NEW YORK (AP) – A year after his run all the way to his first Grand Slam final, Kei Nishikori’s stay at the U.S. Open lasted only a few hours.
The fourth-seeded Nishikori had two match points in the fourth-set tiebreaker against 41st-ranked Benoit Paire, but the Frenchman saved both of them then took control in the fifth for a 6-4, 3-6, 4-6, 7-6 (6), 6-4 victory Monday.
It was the first win of his career against an opponent ranked in the top five.
Nishikori had withdrawn from the hard-court warmup at Cincinnati, citing a hip injury, but he said Monday he was fine physically. Still, the Japanese star looked sluggish late in the match, which took 3 hours, 14 minutes on a steamy day.
Last year at Flushing Meadows, Nishikori became the first man from Asia to reach a major final, where he lost to Marin Cilic.